Posts Tagged ‘NBA’

C.J. Miles may have been your saviour in the playoff. (Jesse Johnson-USA Today Sports)

Now that the NBA season is done, it’s time to look back at some of our bigger hits from The Wire Troll. Hopefully, you were able to ride some of these picks to victory.

GUARDS

Jordan Clarkson, PG, Los Angeles Lakers: Clarkson was a great pick up down the stretch. In the 31 games after we recommended him, he averaged 17 points, five assists and five rebounds in 32 minutes. Not only did Clarkson help you down the stretch, but if you picked him up in a dynasty league, he has the potential to be the next Chandler Parsons. The Lakers have high hopes for their rookie guard.

C.J. Miles, SG, Indiana Pacers: Miles, who has always had some serious skill (see video below), went the distance over the past month of the season. He had back-to-back 25-point games in late March to hopefully gain your trust, then finished with 105 points and 20 treys over the final week of the season (four games). This is a guy that could have won you your championship if you had stuck with. It will be interesting to see how many minutes Miles gets next season with Paul George returning in full force.

FORWARDS

Nikola Mirotic, PF, Chicago Bulls: Mirotic got recommended twice before he became a March Monster, averaged 21 points and eight rebounds while possibly pushing you into and through the first round of your playoffs. Given consideration as the Rookie of the Year, he is still young and could be looking at a big role in Chicago for years to come.

Hassan Whiteside, PF/C, Miami Heat: Whiteside came out of nowhere and is the kind of guy that could have won you your league. Averaging 12 points, 10 rebounds and 2.5 blocks isn’t a joke. It will be interesting to see how Whiteside does next season after opposing coaches do some scouting. The only negative with him is assists, as he had just six the entire season.

CENTRES

Rudy Gobert, Utah Jazz: Gobert was our deep sleeper of the season, and were we wrong, we said he could be great in a few seasons and should be picked up in dynasty leagues. Instead he decided to break out this season, winding up third in the Most Improved Player voting. Gobert helped force Enes Kanter out of Utah and took over the starting job, averaging 11 points, 13 rebounds and nearly three blocks as a starter. Gobert finished the season sixth in rebounds and second in blocks.

Hassan Whiteside, Miami Heat: We recommended Whiteside in mid-January, and it turned out as a golden pick as he got way more touches in January, then sunk even more buckets in February before cooling slightly in March and then finishing with a flourish on the glass in April. All told, he improved his FT shooting while averaging a double-double with over two and a half blocks per game. Whiteside was a major surprise for Miami this season and if you were smart enough to scoop him off the wire early, you got about three months of solid production.

BONUS

Michael Beasley, SF, Miami Heat: In a few Fantasy leagues we play in, the championship is a one day matchup on the final day of the season, and with the Heat eliminated from the playoffs it decided to play four players, including Beasley, the full 48 minutes. He put up 34 points, 11 rebounds, eight assists, two steals and two blocks and may have single-handidly won you a championship on the final day of the season even though there was no reason you should have been starting him, right?

Now it’s your turn. Let us know in the comments below which Fantasy basketball waiver wire picks helped you the most this season.

He’s been massively inconsistent and the free agent to be could be nearing the end of his Lakers’ career. However, Johnson’s recent play may give LA pause to think about bringing him back next season. He’s been logging a big load lately, and while his shooting leaves something to be desired, Johnson has reached double digit points in four of the last five (including a team-high 16 on Sunday), while canning plenty of treys and pitching in with more boards than usual (although, overall, his rebounding is down slightly after averaging a career-best 4.4 last season).

For a player that has played on eight teams in just four seasons, Smith might have finally found a home in Philadelphia. As a starter for the 76ers, he’s averaging 15 points and seven assists while shooting 47 per cent from downtown. Smith isn’t a flashy pick up, but could be an under the radar pick to help you win your league.

After not playing in the NBA for over two years due to injury, Richardson is back on the court and starting to look like his old self. In 11 games he has averaged 12 points, four boards and a steal while shooting 38 per cent from deep and 90 per cent from the line. J-Rich is sitting out Saturday for rest, so he isn’t all the way back. But when he plays he is worth something.

udley has been playing well lately in large part to his minutes going up. He has cracked the 30-minute mark in three of his last four games, which has helped his scoring. You would like to see a little more, but if things keep trending this direction Dudley might be worth a pickup.